


Whiskey Water

by twilymeeks



Category: Final Space (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, I NEED TO WRITE MORE POLYSPACE BECAUSE. HHHNNNNGGGHHH, Multi, Polyspace, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, hello I love them so much, loosely based upon the song by shelby merry!! STREAM IT!!!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 13:34:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30106743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twilymeeks/pseuds/twilymeeks
Summary: I fall too hardBut I've waited so longWhen you drive by my homeYeah, I feel like no oneHurt my own heart 'til I'm doneDrinkin' this whiskey water - Whiskey Water, Shelby Merry
Relationships: Quinn Airgone/Avocato/Gary Goodspeed
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	Whiskey Water

**It kind of shocked him that he’d never seen Avocato drink before.**

Back in his time on the Galaxy One, for fairly obvious reasons, it was clear that no sort of thing was allowed in the first place. HUE always said that it would be foolish to let that sort of thing aboard a prisoner’s vessel, somehow being able to list every reasonable (and dark) possibility.

So when Gary saw a bottle of what seemed to be whiskey on the table of the kitchen quarters, in a way, he was kind of left curious. He wasn’t even sure if it had expired for Christ’s sake. The lighting of the room was dark, and he was nearly unable to pinpoint the exact expression on his face other than a ceiling lamp that seemed to be on its last legs. 

“Hey, bro-cato, my man! Didn’t think you’d drink without me.” Gary said.

No response.

Gary was puzzled. Avocato was certainly the kind of person who was alert to all sorts of things, whether it be life-threatening or just plain ridiculous. Gary walked closer, his footsteps echoing throughout the empty void of a room. It was then that Avocato finally looked up, immediately looking away a few seconds later. He twirled his finger across the rim of the glass, which seemed to be consumed partway through. Now that he looked at Avocato’s face closely, he seemed to look pretty spacey, which was unusual from Gary’s perspective. He couldn’t see the redness of his cheeks because of Avocato’s fur, but he definitely sensed it. Yep, his compadre was drunk, no doubt about it.

Gary opened his mouth to say another word, and that’s when he noticed it. The rough, red circles under his eyes spoke to him without a single word needing to be uttered. Yes, it was that similar expression that he’d seen too many times, when his mother would lunge into the bedroom where her former partner lived, mascara running down her cheeks while intense emotions ran through every bit of her body. That pained expression was see-through, and after the events of today, Gary couldn’t help but run his hands through his messy blonde hair.

Hours earlier, everything seemed to look up. More of their questions leading to their escape from Final Space were being answered, the bonds between new and existing allies alike continued to grow, and it almost seemed like everything was going to be okay. However, reality was far different than the ones fabricated in fairytales. He didn’t want to think about that moment, when Little Cato was finally pushed to the edge. The boy had gone through a lot since his dad’s unexpected return, and the consequences of Avocato’s unawareness finally came to a head. One near-miss led to another, leading to a gun, a hand grabbed that followed a gunshot. Based on its trajectory, anyone could’ve died if the bullet’s trajectory was closer to the course, but the small boy’s panic-induced inaccuracy seemed to benefit them, although that definitely shouldn’t be classified as a great thing no matter the cause. The yelling, the frustration, and even the blunt force of physical contact seemed to lead to the events transpiring now.

“What do you want, Gary?” Avocato grumbled, finally speaking up. Gary could’ve sword he’d heard a tremor in his voice, which sounded alarm signals in his brain. He definitely wasn’t doing good at all.

“Just checking up on you.” Gary replied.

“I—I didn’t think you were this type of person.”

“It's a habit. Just leave me to myself, and we’re good.” Avocato replied.

“Well, it’s not a very _good_ one! Believe me, I lived with it.” Gary replied, chuckling.

“If it’s about what happened earlier, you can talk to me about it.”

“Gary, there’s nothing to talk about.” Avocato said, gaining more hostility in his voice. Gary grimaced, knowing what was coming. He’d been in a relationship with him for a long while, so he knew some of Avocato’s more toxic traits. He was definitely trying to push him away, and Gary wasn’t willing to let that happen. Gary put a hand on Avocato’s paw, but was instantly swatted away.

“Dude, come on. You know there’s something bugging you.” Gary said as he wore a small frown, nudging himself closer to Avocato. The ventrexian let out a low growl as Gary looked at him with those pitiful eyes. He definitely wouldn’t understand, no, not him, Quinn, or anyone would understand how he felt right now. He clenched his teeth, and lo and behold, Quinn had walked into the room. She was probably wondering where Gary was or something.

“Gary, where have you been? We were going to discuss-” Quinn’s tone was urgent, slightly frustrated given that Gary had probably missed something very important, but from the moment Quinn eyed them along with the bottle of whiskey her features grew softer. Gary mouthed something to Quinn, and she walked over, leaning on the wall to give the two some space. Avocato could feel his memories wander to the conflict from earlier as he touched his cheek, still hurting from the harsh slap he’d received earlier. A distressed purr rumbled from the ventrexian, his palms beginning to sweat. He took his paws from the glass and fidgeted with his thumbs, trying to keep his mind clear. It was already hard enough, he probably had what, maybe three glasses already? His mind was definitely teetering all over the place, and he could definitely taste the sensation of whiskey on his tongue. His hands were just getting sweatier, and it just made his head hurt. He buried his head in his hands in an attempt to ease his growing anxieties, and he could feel another hand touch his shoulder. Of course this was happening again, and he felt guilty for having to put them through this.

Seeing how his fur was standing on it’s ends, Quinn decided it was time to walk over to them, clasping Avocato’s paw and intertwining her fingers with his. Admittedly, Quinn and Gary both shared one thought: this wasn’t the same Avocato they knew before all of this. He still had those familiar traits of his, but there was something that felt...quieter, almost. Of course, Gary and Quinn had woken up to the ventrexian in a sweat before, eyes fearful, clutching his chest like his heart would pop out if he moved even an inch. They both knew Avocato had a hard time repressing emotions, but the sheer weight of everything made that far worse, and what happened earlier definitely seemed to amplify that. It was already hard enough for a father to hear about the sheer trauma their kid went through while they were dead, but not being able to accept that made everything far worse. Perhaps they’d take it a little too far when Little Cato nearly shot his biological father, but it was enough to light a fuse throughout the mood of the entire crew. Everything was already beginning to take a toll on the crew, and this nailed that through and through. The ventrexian’s purring seemed to simmer down just a bit, but the anxious mannerisms of his body stayed put. 

“I-I’m sorry. For earlier.” Avocato muttered out. Everyone was asleep except the three of them, so he tried to keep his volume to a minimal level. Gary copied Quinn’s gesture, holding Avocato’s hand as he looked him straight in the eyes.

“We all got a bit paranoid. The kid got pushed over the edge.” Gary replied.

“It’s scary seeing him like that.”

“How long has he been afraid of me for?” Avocato said, letting his thumb rub Gary’s palm.

“Shooting you _terrified_ him. Hell, seeing you under the spell of Invictus was like dozens of ice cubes being put down my spine.” Gary replied.

“He tries, but he can’t get that thought out of his head. The kid gets nightmares, man.”

“I..understand just as little as Avocato does, but Little Cato went through a lot while you were gone.” Quinn chimed in.

“You know, the day after you died, your kid somehow managed to rope Gary into a suicide mission.”

“You what?!” Avocato said, looking Gary in the eyes. Gary could feel his hair standing on it’s ends, breaking into a cold sweat.

“I-I may have said that I’d do anything for the kid.” Gary said, chuckling awkwardly.

“That moment led to a helluva lot of stuff, but in the end, the kid was feeling as lonely as someone could get. He really missed you.”

Avocato let out a breath in an attempt to ease his emotions. Was his chest getting tighter? God, he didn’t want to get emotional. Alcohol really brought out traits he wanted no one to see.

“I don’t think it’s sunk in for you yet. Little Cato isn’t the same kid you think he is anymore.” Gary said. He could feel his voice wavering, which surprised Avocato.

“He’s been through a lot of crap. I’m not sure if I can even call him that anymore. I know you’re aware of the time-shard fiasco, but Little Cato was alone for 60 years. The kid was forced to mature thinking the entire _universe_ was against him. He’s still a kid but like--there’s a lot of baggage that everyone’s trying to understand. Heck, I was alone for five years on the Galaxy One. It gives me some leeway, but not by as much as you think.”

“It’s not easy to accept that. It’s jarring even for me.” Quinn replied.

“We’ve just got to be there for him. We might not understand everything going on in his mind, but as long as we’re trying, I think that’s better than anything else. He’s a bright kid, you know?”

“But what if he won’t give me that shot?” Avocato replied.

“Give him time. What you did earlier had me pretty peeved.” Gary replied.

“I get you wanted to help, but you’ve just gotta take a few steps back. Little by little, you know? Don’t just throw yourself into the fire.”

He wasn’t sure what Gary had said that made his heart waver the way it did, but it was effective enough to let the waterworks flow. His mind was murky, swimming in that one emotion and leaving him vulnerable to Gary and Quinn. Quinn pulled him closer to her, feeling a tear hit her palm as the ventrexian sobbed quietly into her shoulder. Gary scooted closer to them, softly hugging Avocato as they stayed like that for a while, letting his repressed emotions fly free as he crumbled, accepting the reality of this situation.

_“I miss my boy.”_

Hearing those words seemingly shattered the hearts of those comforting him. They definitely missed the bubbly, happy-go-lucky child Little Cato was on a constant basis. But now, things were different. Little Cato was still himself, just a bad case of being dealt the crappiest hand in the universe. They couldn’t even imagine how it felt for Avocato to hear about the physical and mental damage he’d dealt to several members of the squad, but knowing your child has experienced life-altering trauma all while he was gone? They couldn’t even begin to comprehend the mental turmoil Avocato would’ve put himself through. There was a part of Gary that definitely believed Avocato thought he was to blame for everything that happened to the kid. After a while, Avocato let himself up from Quinn’s shoulders, letting out a quiet sniffle.

“Better?” Quinn asked, to which Avocato gave a quiet nod. He reached for his drink, which was promptly blocked by Quinn.

“I don’t think so, babe.” Quinn smirked.

“You literally _reek_ of alcohol. How much did you even drink?”

“Three, maybe four cups. Not sure.” Avocato replied.

“I can hold mine down easy.”

“Bro, your face is literally hotter than the sun.” Gary said.

“You’re _totally_ drunk.”

“Gary.” Avocato growled.

“You know, I bet if I scratched you by the ears right now-” Quinn smiled.

“Don’t you dare.” Avocato cut her off, daggers in his eyes. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around Avocato, the ventrexian’s head put to rest on a shoulder. Quinn joined in the hug pile, squishing herself with the two. She planted a kiss on Avocato’s cheek, to which his brain went from devastated to frozen.

“Man, you should see your face right now.” Gary said, chuckling.

“You’re so freakin’ cute!”

Admittedly, Avocato tried to hide the smirk that was emerging on his face. Was this his weakness? This kind of physical contact was definitely that. Gary, Quinn, even Avocato himself knew that he was the prime example of someone who craved physical contact. Gary was similar, but unlike him, Avocato didn’t exactly like to show it. So of course, the first time Gary ever got a hold of touching his ears, it was like a crazy dose of heaven along with hellish embarrassment. Maybe it was the fact that Avocato was probably tipsier than he thought he was, but he couldn’t stop himself from purring just from how much he enjoyed this moment. The soft stuff always got to him. Quinn could feel herself blushing, and Gary? Well, he looked like he was about to cry more than Avocato had earlier. With a cheeky smile, Gary started scratching the back of the ventrexian’s ears, to which Avocato was way too into the moment to resist. He cupped his cheeks and kissed him on the nose, leading to a pretty unexpected chuckle from Avocato. Yep, their boyfriend was way off his rocker, and it was incredible to witness. 

Gary didn’t expect to be kissed back though, letting his tongue intertwine with Avocato’s. After a few seconds, Avocato’s lips parted ways with Gary’s, both boys letting out a deep breath. Quinn kissed Avocato in the same way, albeit for a shorter time than they did. She kissed his cheeks as she saw the sparkle in Avocato’s eyes, absorbing all the affection he could get. The two hugged Avocato, and planted small kisses on his neck, back, anywhere they could reach. It was strange how tightly the mood seemed to shift, from one of melancholy to something pretty wholesome from all sides. They all wore a similar grin, letting themselves be immersed in this moment. This level of extreme chocolate-covered love didn’t come that often given the stakes they’d been facing; and at some point, Avocato’s brain was mushy enough to plant himself in between the two, resting his head on their shoulders.

To say he was purring was an understatement. This wasn’t just any purring to them, no, this was _advanced purring_. Gary could’ve sworn Avocato was quite literally vibrating, and he exchanged a look with Quinn, who was trying her best not to laugh. The combination of love and booze had practically halted the ventrexian’s rational mindset, and it was crazy to think they’d never seen him like this before. They could feel the gushy smile radiating from Avocato even if they didn’t see it directly, the purrs spoke more than his face ever could. Gary rubbed his back, feeling their boyfriend’s happy lil’ vibrations as Quinn just watched, smiling. After a while, the purring seemed to come to a standstill, replaced with a lighter noise. Quinn shifted slightly, only to find that Avocato had quite literally fallen asleep in their arms. His light snore echoed throughout the kitchen quarters as the dark, red sky laid dormant as they watched him peacefully.

“There’s no way we’re carrying him back.” Gary whispered, chuckling a little.

“Maybe that’s okay, you know?” Quinn responded.

“It’s been a while since we’ve had a moment like this.”

Quinn and Gary both moved themselves downwards, putting their heads against the wall as Avocato was nudged in the middle of them. His head slowly moved to mount itself on Quinn’s shoulder, Quinn lightly scratching his head knowing he was knocked out cold. She didn’t even seem to mind the whiskey smell all that much anymore. Gary came back to the two with a blanket, along with two shot glasses and a large blanket.

“This definitely reminds me of a certain time in a certain place.” Quinn teased.

“Oh boy, I wonder what it was? Maybe we weren’t, you know, levitating in the middle of New York?” Gary replied, chuckling as he filled the small glasses with whiskey. He handed Quinn hers, and held his up towards her. The two muttered ‘cheers’ and let their glasses clink, taking a fast swig of it like it was their last. As Quinn handed hers back to Gary, a melancholic feeling held her heart by it’s whim. Gary had saved her. He’d somehow saved Avocato, and they were all here. Despite her wishes, Gary and the whole squad came for her. They had hope, and since then, Quinn started to believe it more too. It was a harsh hope, but something in her gut told her it could be done. They were going to escape and save the universe, she knew it and so did Gary. Quinn grasped Gary’s hand, and Gary smiled in return. 

_They were all gonna make it out of this together. They’d definitely make sure of it._

**Author's Note:**

> HELLO I CANNOT WAIT FOR SEASON 3 IN THREE DAYS !!!!! (at the time of writing this), I really should write more Polyspace because I love these space dorks so much...I'm not ready to see them in pain all season, Olan is a madman and I respect that. I wrote this to ease the incoming pain, I hope y'all are as NOT READY AS I AM THANKS FOR READING!!!!


End file.
